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How Best Buy Tried To Whip The Geek Squad Into Shape
The Consumerist site is featuring a follow-up to their Geek Squad porn collectors story, a feature we discussed back in July. According to Consumerist, Best Buy set up their own rigorous internal investigation to catch the culprits soon after these revelations became public. At that point, of course, employee morale went out the window. Draconian interrogation methods were apparently used, and innocent employees lost their jobs. "There were three Geek Squad members fired from my store including myself. The first two were fired for burning a non-copyrighted CD for another employee on a non company issued blank CD-R. I admitted in my interrogation that I was aware of this, and that I stopped these events after that occurrence. I was fired for being aware of this non copyrighted CD being copied. To quote, I did not provide the proper example of leadership. Keep in my mind I removed over 100 illegal tools and pirated discs upon my arrival as supervisor, as well as some remnants of an internal porn scandal."
Suggestion: wrongful termination
Or try "employment lawyer." Beware: the US is largely employment-at-will. So, unless you're a minority, pregnant/a woman, handicapped, over 50, or in the military...you're pretty much screwed.
Shame, as it wasn't always that way, and the US is one of the few places where at-will employment is the norm.
Please help metamoderate.
IANAL, but my understanding is: in the US, if you don't have a contract (and it's a pretty safe bet that Best Buy employees don't), then you're employed "At Will", and may be terminated for (almost) any reason at any time -- although it varies by a small. It's very, very hard to successfully sue for wrongful termination of at-will employment, short of cases of gross discrimination -- blatant, documented racism, sexism, or something along those lines.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-will_employment
Long ago, in college, I worked at Best Buy in Indianapolis. I worked in the Audio/Car Audio departments. So anyways, one night I'm coming into work and get pulled aside by the LP guy (the goofy guys where the yellow shirts that think they're important). I thought he was just going to ask me to watch the front while he took a break but instead pulled me in one of the front offices. Told me he'd be right back after asking me to sit down.
A few minutes later, he comes in with one of the assistant managers with him, they both sit down and hand me a clipboard with paper and pen. They ask for me to write down everything I've stolen. I'm like, WTF? I haven't stolen anything is my only reply to every question. The LP guy kept getting in my face, yelling and moaning that I've stolen something. He gets pissed and threatens to call the police, I say, call them, I'd love to explain to them your false accusations without any proof even if I did steal something.
The LP guy leaves and the manager there has nothing to say. Granted, I was shocked cause it was the only manager I liked. The only thing I said at that moment was, "I've lost all respect for you at this time!"
So the LP guy comes back and then threatens with police and polygraph test, I'm all open for the idea, this just pissed him off more. We exchange more words, he keeps demanding I write down everything I've stolen so I just dropped the damn clipboard and pen. I proceed to tell them, if you have nothing on me as I have not stolen anything, I'm leaving. LP guy walks out again all pissed, comes back in a few minutes and tells me I'm suspended til further notice. He escorts me out.
By the time I get home, I get a call from a co-worker who's pissed off and tells me the same exact story. They pulled him in right after me, same type of interrogation. We later found out they did this to all but 2 employees in the Audio/Car Audio department. 6 out of the 8 that is.
If we go back in time a little, they were opening a new store and had others help out from the surrounding stores. Guess which 6 helped, the 6 let go. While we were helping the store, they said we would get paid retro type pay since the other store didn't have us in their system. So we determined this was just a way for them to just not pay us after we kept insisting on our paychecks from the overnight work and days off we spent at the other store.
Funny to think two weeks later we show up for our final check and they tell us we've been fired, our only response was, "Really, cause we already found other jobs, why would we want to work here after what happened?"
We all talked to a lawyer but the amount owed he said just wasn't worth it to sue.
Moral of the story, Best Buy = Shitty Place to Work
I really doubt this is the case. I worked for BestBuy for two years, and despite all the pressure from managers, most floor salesmen that I knew, myself included, weren't out to screw the customer. We get no incentives to sell you more, except we don't have to hear our managers bitch at us (as much.) In the two years that I was there, there was one contest for selling, and the prize was a $20 flash drive. So in your case, I don't think they were withholding stock from you. None of us kept track of stock in our heads, and the inventory system at bestbuy isn't very accurate, nor is it quick.
The story told by the geek squad supervisor is a sad an unfortunate one. However, (im sure you could see that "but" coming ;) what do you expect from a company who holds interviews for potential employees through a human voice translator? I know this because a couple of years ago while i was in college (circa 2003) I needed a job and someone told me best buy was hiring, while apprehensive, I went for it anyway. It turns out the interview was conducted over the phone via a human like operator, and if you pressed a wrong key you would fail the interview. I was told this ahead of time and of course I still did it, and it cost me getting the job. How could of made that mistake even though I was told ahead of time? No idea, maybe it was fate intervening. I'm a nix admin now 4 years out of college, not making bank, but doing ok, and I gotta say I'm happy that i pressed the wrong key that day. I'm glad i never worked for the technology sector's wallmart. It also makes you wonder how many future managers or talented employees they have lost due to someone getting a case of fat fingers during those "phone interviews". My advice to this poor supervisor; absorb the harsh lesson laid upon you. You didn't do anything wrong, but dude, its best buy, just avoid them in any way you can in the future, they don't deserve anyone's business or career.
There were three Geek Squad members fired from my store including myself. The first two were fired for burning a non-copyrighted CD for another employee on a non company issued blank CD-R. I admitted in my interrogation that I was aware of this, and that I stopped these events after that occurrence. I was fired for being aware of this non copyrighted CD being copied. To quote, I did not provide the proper example of leadership. Keep in my mind I removed over 100 illegal tools and pirated discs upon my arrival as supervisor, as well as some remnants of an internal porn scandal
Computers are so mysterious to most people that they might as well be from Mars. They have no way of knowing whether or not the kid down the street who says he knows computers is pro quality or not. All they know is that he knows more than they do.
How ya like dat?